Amid the skyline of Hong Kong a concept design of harmony and biomimicry comes to light. Imagine functioning buildings, not made of reinforced concrete, steel and glass but composed of a living network. In this vision Hong Kong’s cityscape transitions into a mycelium-driven framework, leaving the era of skyscrapers behind. We embrace a speculative approach to design, looking for organic substitutes to conventional building materials.
By translating adoptions in Biology into solutions of architecture (Pawlyn, 2011), mycelium-bound composites take shape and flourish. They provide havens for bird populations, reinstating shelter and nesting grounds amidst the rapid urban sprawl. Nature no longer remains at the fringes and thrives at the heart where hustling urban life happens.
Overwhelming renewal and removal of buildings in the city generates excessive construction and demolition waste which imposes a great risk to our environment (Mohammed, ElKady and Abdel- Gawwad, 2021). The allure of mycelium-based architecture stems from its unique versatility and rigidity. The structure morphs and adjusts its form without requiring expensive and inefficient traditional building endeavours.
In this future, the built environment develops and changes in sync to the thriving and evolving communities — ultimately becoming a living and breathing part of it.
These structures present a new perspective on how we interact with nature. Humans and nature no longer exist as distinct entities, but are intertwined in respect and coexistence.
References
Pawlyn, M. (2011) Biomimicry in Architecture. Riba Publishing
Mohammed, M.S., ElKady, H. and Abdel- Gawwad, H.A. (2021) ‘Utilization of construction and demolition waste and synthetic aggregates’, Journal of Building Engineering
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